Department for Transport

Railways: North of England

Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent progress there has been on the electrification works to the TransPennine rail line through Stalybridge; and what his most recent estimate is of the potential completion date of those works.

Paul Maynard: Completion of the Transpennine Route Upgrade (including electrification and delivery of key capacity and journey time benefits for passengers of the Transpennine line between Manchester-Stalybridge-Leeds-York) is currently in the development phase. This development work is expected to conclude in December 2017. The level of investment required from Government will be considered in early 2018, and, subject to a satisfactory business case, delivery would commence with a target completion by December 2022.

Severn River Crossing: Tolls

Mr Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his policy is on the extension of tolls on the Severn Bridges once his powers to levy tolls under the Severn Bridges Act 1992 expire.

Mr John Hayes: The government has made it clear that after the existing concession finishes, crossing users will continue to pay to use the crossing so that expenses incurred by the taxpayer outside of the concession can be recouped, and maintenance and operating costs of this important asset covered. The government will consult on proposals for the tolls in due course.

Denmark Hill Station

Ms Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had discussions with Govia Thameslink Railway on the proposed timetable changes to services from Denmark Hill station from 2018.

Paul Maynard: No such discussions have taken place. Govia Thameslink Railway are currently seeking stakeholders’ views on their proposals for the 2018 Thameslink timetable.

Taxis: Guide Dogs

Tom Pursglove: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to improve the enforcement of regulations against the discrimination of guide dogs and their owners by taxis and private hire vehicle operators.

Andrew Jones: Under the Equality Act 2010 it is illegal for the driver of a taxi or private hire vehicle to refuse to carry an assistance dog unless they hold a medical exemptions certificates issued by the local licensing authority. It is unacceptable that some drivers continue to discriminate in this way and I am determined that this practice must stop. Guidance has previously been issued to licensing authorities to support their implementation of these legal protections, and we are currently reviewing Best Practice Guidance to strengthen the recommendations relating to taxi and PHV accessibility more generally. I am clear that the local licensing authorities should play their part in eradicating such harmful discrimination.

Transport: Guide Dogs

Tom Pursglove: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many prosecutions there have been of transport operators for discriminating against guide dogs and their owners in each of the last five years.

Andrew Jones: I understand the harm that the refusal of an assistance dog causes, not only to its owners ability to complete the journey that they set out to make but also to travel with confidence in the future. We do not currently collect data on the outcome of assistance dog refusal incidents reported to local authorities, however my officials and I meet regularly with assistance dog owners and their representatives and I understand anecdotally that few refusals result in a successful prosecution.I want to understand why this is, and will be reviewing the available evidence with a view to eradicating such unacceptable discrimination.

Motor Vehicles: Greater Manchester

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many new ultra-low emission vehicles have been registered in Greater Manchester in each of the last two years.

Mr John Hayes: There were 827 ULEVs registered for the first time in Greater Manchester during 2015, and 460 during 2014. (Source of the data is DFT analysis of DVLA registration data)

Railways: West Midlands

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will consider to remove Govia from the shortlist for the West Midlands franchise.

Paul Maynard: As the franchising authority, we have to present a fair and transparent set of rules in which commercial organisations can bid for and run passenger services. Govia are a Pre-Qualification Questionnaire (PQQ) Passport holder, which means they can express an interest in bidding for any future franchise.

Aviation: Public Bodies

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent representations he has received on issuing a new statutory body acting as an independent aviation air quality authority.

Mr John Hayes: The Department for Transport has received no recent representations on this matter.

Govia Thameslink Railway: Industrial Disputes

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what evidence he has received and assessed in to claims that trade union leaders are encouraging Govia Thameslink Rail employees to take unofficial industrial action.

Paul Maynard: The Department is currently assessing the Force Majeure claim received by Govia Thameslink Railway in relation to industrial action. This is an ongoing process and it would not be appropriate to outline the results until the analysis is completed.

Shipping: Minimum Wage

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what representations his Department have received from (a) individual shipping companies, (b) the UK Chamber of Shipping, (c) maritime trades unions and (d) the TUC on National Minimum Wage enforcement for seafarers since July 2016.

Mr John Hayes: No individual shipping companies have made representations to the Department with regard to the National Minimum Wage (NMW) for seafarers. As Minister of State responsible for this policy area, I formally met the Chamber of Shipping on 23 November for discussions which did not include NMW. However, I have engaged with Chamber officials on several less formal occasions and am fully aware that this is an issue which is of great interest to the Chamber and has been discussed at length with department officials. I have met maritime trades union officials formally on two occasions (one with Nautilus International and the other with RMT), again to discuss a wide range of issues, including NMW for seafarers. I have also met union representatives, on several occasions, in less formal circumstances, where again discussion was wide ranging and included NMW for seafarers. I will continue to meet trade union representatives on a routine basis in the course of my Departmental business. Since July 2016 the Secretary of State has met senior TUC officials on two occasions to discuss a wide range of transport issues (including the National Minimum Wage for seafarers). As part of ongoing stakeholder engagement, officials at DfT are in regular contact with both trades union and the CoS. NMW is one of a range of issues discussed.

Electric Vehicles: Greater Manchester

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many charge points for electric vehicles have been installed in Greater Manchester in each year since 2009-10.

Mr John Hayes: Greater Manchester was one of 8 UK regions that received Government funding under the Plugged-in Places scheme, which resulted in the installation of 160 chargepoints between 2010 and 2014 as part of the Greater Manchester Electric Vehicle Scheme (GMEVS). Additional chargepoints will also have been installed with support from the private sector. The GMEVS website lists the location and live availability of the chargepoints on an interactive map: http://www.ev.tfgm.com/

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Shipping: Minimum Wage

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on the effect of National Minimum Wage enforcement on (a) seafarer pay and (b) employment and training opportunities for UK seafarers.

Margot James: My Rt hon friend the Secretary of State has regular discussions with ministerial colleagues on a number of issues.

Shipping: Minimum Wage

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on the effect of National Minimum Wage enforcement for seafarers on the national maritime skills base.

Margot James: My rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State has regular discussions with ministerial colleagues on a number of issues.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Research

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will request that the Medical Research Council conducts an inquiry into the management of the PACE trial to ascertain whether any fraudulent activity has occurred.

Joseph Johnson: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Research

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will prevent the PACE trial researchers from being given further public research funding until an inquiry into possible fraudulent activity into the PACE trial has been conducted.

Joseph Johnson: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Sizewell C Power Station: Construction

Dr   Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the timetable is for the construction of Sizewell C; and who will be responsible for the construction of that site.

Jesse Norman: EDF Energy is responsible for the construction and timetable of Sizewell C. Stage 2 of their consultation, prior to submitting an application for development consent, started on November 23 and will finish on 3 February 2017.

Productivity: Low Pay

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what meetings he has had to discuss productivity with employers in low-paid sectors in each of the last six months.

Mr Nick Hurd: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Staff

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many staff his Department has dedicated to the competition process for European Capital of Culture 2023.

Sir Alan Duncan: I refer the honourable Member to the answer given by my right honourable Friend the Minister of State for Culture, Media and Sport (Mr Hancock) on 23 November to question 53543.

Syria: Military Aid

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the Government provides to Syria civil defence in (a) Syria and (b) Aleppo.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The United Kingdom has provided support to Syria Civil Defence (also known as the White Helmets) through the cross-departmental Conflict Pool and its successor, the Conflict Stability and Security Fund. Our assistance has been delivered through trusted third party implementers. The total value of funds committed between June 2013 and the end of the current financial year (31 March 2017) is £32 million. All funds are accounted for in line with Government guidelines, including the receipt and review of quarterly financial reports.Civil Defenders are operating in eastern Aleppo, but as a besieged area, continued support is not currently possible.Our support to Syria Civil Defence is part of a coordinated international programme of assistance. It has helped to provide the Syrian-led organisation of over 2800 volunteers with much-needed training and equipment. To date, they have saved more than 70,000 lives and were nominated for the Nobel peace prize in both 2015 and 2016 in recognition of their efforts to alleviate the suffering of the Syrian people.

United Arab Emirates: Freedom of Expression

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support people in the United Arab Emirates who are threatened, harassed or face arrest for exercising their right of freedom of expression.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: ​We encourage Emirati authorities to follow due process in criminal proceedings and ensure the human rights of all Emirati citizens are respected. We believe freedom of expression is a universal human right and that people must be allowed to freely discuss and debate issues, challenge their governments and make informed decisions in accordance with international human rights law. Where we have concerns we make these clear to Emirati authorities, as part of our broader strategic engagement.

United Arab Emirates: Human Rights

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he has taken to support the release of Dr Mohamed al-Roken and other human right activists imprisoned in the United Arab Emirates in 2013.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The British Government followed the trial of Mr Al Roken closely. While we welcomed the fact that local media and relatives of the 94 were allowed to attend the trial, we raised concerns about some aspects of the way the trial was conducted, such as lack of access to international observers, an accusation that defendants could not access their lawyers and the length of the sentencing.The then Foreign Secretary, my Rt Hon. Friend The Lord Hague of Richmond, and the former Minister for the Middle East, my Rt Hon. Friend the Member for North East Bedfordshire (Mr Burt) raised the importance of due process in criminal proceedings, upholding international standards of justice and ensuring the human rights of all Emirati citizens are fully respected, including the rights of freedom of expression and association.

United Arab Emirates: Freedom of Expression

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his United Arab Emirates counterpart on the respect for freedom of expression in that country.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: ​We believe freedom of expression is a universal human right and that people must be allowed to freely discuss and debate issues, challenge their governments and make informed decisions. Where we have concerns we make these clear to Emirati authorities, as part of our broader strategic engagement.

Somalia: Refugees

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to support the Kenyan government to ensure that Somali refugees in the Dadaab camp are being repatriated in a humane, safe and dignified manner.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: ​We are working closely with the United Nations High Commissioner For Refugees and the governments of Kenya and Somalia to ensure that refugee returns from Dadaab to Somalia are voluntary, and sustainable and in line with international refugee law.On 16 November, Kenya's Interior Minister announced that Kenya was postponing the closure deadline for Dadaab by six months. We welcomed this announcement.The UK recently announced we are providing an additional £20 million to support accelerated safe voluntary returns of refugees to Somalia from Kenya, by helping to ensure that refugees who want to return have the support and possibility of livelihoods necessary for their safe and long-term resettlement in Somalia.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Elections

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo on the postponement of their presidential elections to April 2018.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK has raised the postponement of presidential elections with the Government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on a number of occasions. Mr Wharton, the Department for International Development Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, visited the DRC in November, and I visited in August. We met government officials including the current Prime Minister, the Vice-PM for Interior/Security and the Minister for Justice. Mr Wharton and I pressed the DRC government to make more progress towards holding timely elections in 2017, as proposed by technical experts, and to respect the human rights of protesters. Furthermore, we emphasised the importance of elections to the DRC’s continuing development.Additionally, our Special Envoy to the Great Lakes Region, Danae Dholakia, attended International Conference of the Great Lakes Region in Luanda in October where she lobbied the DRC government on similar lines. Our Embassy in Kinshasa maintains a constant dialogue with the government on resolving the current political crisis peacefully.

Ghana: Elections

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to support the government of Ghana to ensure that the elections taking place next month in that country are conducted in a free and fair manner.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: ​The UK has been vocal in stressing the importance of free, fair, credible and transparent elections with key stakeholders in Ghana, including all major candidates, parties and election management bodies. I met the Electoral Commissioner on 2 November in London. The High Commissioner in Accra will be following the elections closely with other diplomatic missions on the ground and Electoral Observer Missions from the EU, African Union, Economic Community of West African States, and the international community.

Ecuadorian Embassy: Protection

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what costs have accrued to his Department for the protection of the Ecuadorian Embassy in London since that building's hosting of Julian Assange.

Sir Alan Duncan: None.

Israel: Bedouin

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the government of Israel on the demolition of the Bedouin village of Umm al-Hiran.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: ​I raised with the Israeli Ambassador the concerns expressed in the House of Commons about plans to demolish the Bedouin village of Umm al-Hiran in the Negev on 23 November. I also issued a public statement on the matter calling on the Israeli authorities and the Bedouin community to work together to find a solution that meets the needs and respects the rights of the people affected.

Gambia: Elections

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to help ensure that the elections taking place in December 2016 in the Gambia are conducted in a free and fair manner.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: ​The UK has been vocal in its opposition to crack down on fair and free campaigning ahead of the election on 1 December and has been active in opposing the imprisonment of the Opposition leader, Ousainou Darboe, and his supporters. Our Ambassador will be following the election closely with other diplomatic missions on the ground. We will urge the African Union and Economic Community Of West African States to intervene if there are any reports of the will of the people being ignored or suppressed. We are also disappointed that the EU Electoral Experts Mission has been refused permission by the Government of The Gambia.

Middle East: Refugees

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the Government is providing to Yazidi and Christian minority refugee groups from Syria and Iraq who have experienced sexual abuse from Daesh.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK has pledged over £2.3 billion in response to the Syria crisis and since June 2014, has committed £169.5 million in humanitarian assistance to the crisis in Iraq.Through the United Nations' Iraq Humanitarian Pooled Fund, UK aid is providing life-saving maternal and child health-care, child protection services, and specialised support for escapees of Daesh terror. We are also supporting the implementation of Iraq's National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security focusing on capacity building and support for victims of gender-based violence.We have provided £7 million for projects in Syria, including capacity building for gathering evidence of Sexual Violence and other Human Rights violations and advocacy work. In 2015-16 the UK assisted 135,627 people (adults and children) in Syria with psychosocial support.

Developing Countries: Females

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what support the Government plans to provide minority women and girls overseas who are victims of sexual abuse.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Since June 2014 we have provided over £1.3million for projects to support gender equality and combat sexual violence, in a number of conflict-affected countries. This includes funding in the current year to promote the use of the International Protocol on the Documentation and Investigation of Sexual Violence in Conflict and to combat the stigma associated with sexual violence.Ending violence against all women and girls is a top priority for the UK. In 2015, this Government made a clear and bold manifesto commitment to tackle violence against women and girls, end Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and combat child and early forced marriage, both at home and abroad.We have increased our resources to tackle violence against women and girls by more than 60% in recent years. This includes Department for International Development's £35 million programme to tackle FGM and their £36 million programme to end Child, Early and Forced Marriage. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is supporting women's rights projects through the Magna Carta Fund for Human Rights and Democracy across at least 28 countries with a total spend of £3,626,037 between 2016 and 2018.

Bangladesh: Minority Groups and Radicalism

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his international counterparts on protecting minorities and tackling extremism in Bangladesh.

Alok Sharma: The Government is extremely concerned by the increase in extremist-related violence and attacks on minority groups in Bangladesh since September 2015. We have engaged with the Government of Bangladesh, regional partners and the international community to support efforts to tackle violence against minorities and address extremism in Bangladesh. Extremism is a global threat that faces all of us, and we stand shoulder to shoulder with Bangladesh in the fight against it.As I said during the Adjournment Debate on Bangladesh in the House of Commons on 8 September it is vital that the Government of Bangladesh upholds and protects the fundamental rights of all their citizens: the right to life, the right to religious freedom or belief and the right to freedom of expression.

Developing Countries: Minority Groups

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans he has to provide trauma support for (a) Yazidis and Christians and (b) other minority communities.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK has pledged over £2.3 billion in response to the Syria crisis and since June 2014, has committed £169.5 million in humanitarian assistance to the crisis in Iraq.The UK is using its aid budget to alleviate the immediate humanitarian suffering of the most vulnerable people in the region, including Yezidis, Christians and other minority groups. All UK-funded aid is distributed on the basis of need, regardless of race, religion and ethnicity.UK support is enabling international non-governmental organizations and UN agencies to provide specialist assistance to those affected by sexual and gender-based violence. This includes clinical care, case management and counselling, reproductive healthcare and cash assistance to particularly vulnerable households.

Iran: Baha'i Faith

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he has received reports on forced closure of Baha'i shops and businesses in Iran and associated economic repression by the Iranian authorities; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: ​The UK regularly raises human rights concerns with the Iranian government including the continued persecution of religious minorities and treatment of the Baha'i community. We are aware of the enforced closures of Baha'i businesses by the Iranian authorities. We call on Iran to cease harassment of all religious minorities and to fulfil its international and domestic obligations to allow freedom of religion to all Iranians.

Cabinet Office

Childbirth: Foreign Nationals

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the (a) number and (b) proportion of births was where one or both parents were foreign-born in (i) London and (ii) each Greater London borough in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Chris Skidmore: The Cabinet Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Attorney General

Attorney General: Sick Leave

Norman Lamb: To ask the Attorney General, how many working days were lost due to mental illness in the Law Officers' Departments in each of the last three years.

Robert Buckland: The Attorney General’s Office, Government Legal Department and Her Majesty’s Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate report quarterly sickness absence statistics to Cabinet Office and define mental disorders as absences for reasons of stress; mood affective disorders; disorders of personality & behaviour and schizophrenia. Based on these definitions, the number of working days lost due to mental disorders in these three departments in each of the last three financial years is as follows: Year Days lost to Mental Disorders AGO GLD HMCPSI01/04/2013 – 31/03/2014 23 1,843 1501/04/2014 – 31/03/2015 0 1,704.5 16801/04/2015 – 31/03/2016 0 1,551 28  In the last 3 financial years the following numbers of absence days have been recorded by the Serious Fraud Office for reasons of Anxiety, Depressive Disorder or Mental Disorder:   Year Days lost to Mental Disorders 2013/14 18 days2014/15 176.5 days2015/16 507 days In addition to this the following number of absence days have been recorded as Stress or Work Related Stress: Year Days lost to Mental Disorders 2013/14 105 days2014/15 195 days2015/16 529 days  The number of working days lost to mental illness in the Crown Prosecution Service for the last three financial years is shown in the table below: Financial YearTotal Number of working days lost due to Mental Illness, including stress.Number of working days lost which were attributed to stress. 01/04/2013-31/03/201416028784401/04/2014-31/03/201515989780701/04/2015-31/03/2016118545856  The absence reasons which are included in the Mental Illness category are categorised in line with World Health Organisation (WHO).

Attorney General: Temporary Employment

Nick Thomas-Symonds: To ask the Attorney General, how many agency staff the Government Legal Department employed at what cost in 2015-16.

Robert Buckland: In 2015-16, the Government Legal Department employed the full time equivalent of 175 agency and contracted staff at a cost of £9,231,000.

Attorney General: Departmental Responsibilities

Catherine West: To ask the Attorney General, how many projects in operation in his Department are related to the UK's exit from the EU.

Robert Buckland: The Department for Exiting the European Union has responsibility for overseeing preparations for the withdrawal of the UK from the EU. In doing this it is working very closely with other government departments, including the Attorney General’s Office. As the Government’s principal legal adviser, the Attorney General advises the Government on a range of legal issues, including on EU matters. The Attorney General’s Office is also working to support the delivery of a successful withdrawal from the European Union, in particular to ensure a smooth transition for superintended departments.

Mental Health Services: Children and Young People

Luciana Berger: To ask the Attorney General, whether his Department is undertaking investigations into the compliance of clinical commissioning groups' resourcing of child and adolescent mental health services with the provisions in section 11 of the Children Act 2004 on arrangements to safeguard and promote welfare.

Robert Buckland: Children and young people’s mental health is a priority area for this Government. The Attorney General’s Office, however, does not have responsibility for investigations into the compliance of clinical commissioning groups' resourcing.

Department for International Development

Developing Countries: HIV Infection

Oliver Colvile: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans her Department has for the inclusion of HIV and AIDS within its Leaving No-One Behind framework.

James Wharton: The Leave No One Behind Promise means we will focus on the most vulnerable and disadvantaged, which includes groups affected by HIV and AIDS. The UK’s recent £1.1 billion pledge to the Global Fund to fight AIDs, TB and Malaria is a practical example of this commitment.

CDC: Investment

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to paragraph 10 of the explanatory memorandum to the Commonwealth Development Corporation Bill, what estimate she has made of market demand over Commonwealth Development Corporation's next strategy cycle.

Priti Patel: As set out in the UN’s Global Goals, urgent action is needed to mobilise, redirect and unlock the transformative power of trillions of dollars of private resources to deliver on sustainable development objectives. Long-term investments, including foreign direct investment, are needed in critical sectors, especially in developing countries. CDC’s work is focused on mobilising capital for specific sustainable development priorities such as health, education and infrastructure, helping to fill the annual financing gap of $2.5 trillion needed every year and deliver against the Goals by 2030.

CDC: Expenditure

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the net receipts were from the Commonwealth Development Corporation in each of the last seven financial years; and what proportion of these receipts counted as overseas development aid.

Priti Patel: CDC – Net Disbursements £ millionYearNew investments made by CDCInflows to CDC from exited investmentsNet disbursements = ODA20093661332332010425197228201129620591201228418110320133262261002014300258422015519528* * From 2015 CDC’s net disbursements no longer count as ODA.

CDC: Pay

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the (a) total remuneration package, (b) amount of expenses claimed and (c) number of first and business class flights taken was by each member of the Commonwealth Development Corporation board in each of the last seven years.

Priti Patel: Information requested by the Hon. member is attached.



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CDC: Investment

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, in which countries the Commonwealth Development Corporation has invested in the last seven years; and what the total value of investments was in each country.

Priti Patel: Disbursements made to Countries in Africa and South Asia over the past 7 years (2009-2015)  RegionCountry£mAfricaAfrica Region395.2AfricaAlgeria9.8AfricaAngola9.0AfricaBotswana2.5AfricaBurkina Faso2.1AfricaCameroon48.2AfricaCongo (Democratic Republic)28.4AfricaCôte d'Ivoire24.0AfricaDjibouti1.7AfricaEgypt53.6AfricaEthiopia11.1AfricaGhana52.7AfricaKenya81.7AfricaLiberia0.4AfricaLibya0.6AfricaMadagascar3.3AfricaMali0.1AfricaMalawi2.7AfricaMauritania1.8AfricaMauritius27.6AfricaMorocco12.6AfricaMozambique2.4AfricaNamibia1.5AfricaNiger0.1AfricaNigeria230.2AfricaRwanda1.6AfricaSenegal6.9AfricaSierra Leone0.9AfricaSouth Africa194.0AfricaSudan2.6AfricaSwaziland7.1AfricaTanzania35.0AfricaTogo7.9AfricaTunisia14.9AfricaUganda29.9AfricaZambia41.9AfricaZimbabwe7.3South AsiaAsia Region25.2South AsiaSouth Asia Region38.8South AsiaBangladesh31.7South AsiaIndia760.5South AsiaPakistan92.9South AsiaSri Lanka6.9 Disbursements made under the pre-2012 investment policy to countries where under the new 2012 investment policy CDC is not permitted to make new investments (2009-15) South AsiaAzerbaijan0.4South AsiaKazakhstan4.1South East EuropeSerbia & Montenegro2.0South AsiaTurkey2.1South AsiaTajikistan0.6Latin AmericaLatin America Region19.9Latin AmericaArgentina0.1Latin AmericaBelize0.2Latin AmericaBrazil80.8Latin AmericaColombia6.9Latin AmericaColumbia and Peru1.7Latin AmericaCosta Rica6.7Latin AmericaGuatemala80.9Latin AmericaHonduras24.7Latin AmericaJamaica0.4Latin AmericaMexico12.0Latin AmericaNicaragua11.0Latin AmericaPeru2.9Asia PacificSouth East Asia Region0.8Asia PacificSingapore1.7Asia PacificCambodia0.2Asia PacificChina218.9Asia PacificIndonesia46.3Asia PacificMalaysia12.0Asia PacificMongolia2.7Asia PacificPapua New Guinea1.1Asia PacificPhilippines3.7Asia PacificSamoa0.1Asia PacificThailand24.1Asia PacificVietnam7.9GlobalGlobal59.3

CDC: Investment

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what the (a) number and (b) value of re-capitalisations carried out by the Commonwealth Development Corporation was since the establishment of that Corporation.

Priti Patel: The Government has equity invested in CDC totalling £1.5 billion. Since its establishment as a public limited company in 1999, CDC plc has received only one new capital injection worth £735 million in 2015.

Prosperity Fund: Energy

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what proportion of her Department's contribution to the Prosperity Fund was allocated to energy projects in each financial year since 2013-14.

James Wharton: For 2013/14 to 2015/16, the Prosperity Fund was funded from FCO’s budget. For 2016/17 a new cross government Prosperity Fund is being managed by the National Security Secretariat; this new fund has its own Spending Review settlement.

Prosperity Fund: Energy

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what proportion of her Department's contribution to the Prosperity Fund was allocated to (a) coal, oil and gas projects and (b) renewable energy projects in each financial year since 2013-14.

James Wharton: For 2013/14 to 2015/16, the Prosperity Fund was funded from FCO’s budget. For 2016/17 a new cross government Prosperity Fund is being managed by the National Security Secretariat; this new fund has its own Spending Review settlement.

Occupied Territories: Demolition

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 22 November 2016 to Question 53572, what discussions she has had with the European Commission on compensation from Israel for the 180 structures funded by the EU's Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection Office that have been demolished by the Israeli government.

James Wharton: The UK is in regular discussion with the European Commission and other European Union (EU) Member States on the issue of compensation. To date the EU has not asked for compensation for EU-funded infrastructure. No decision has yet been made as to whether to claim compensation in the future.

Conflict, Stability and Security Fund

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund is included as part of her Department's commitment to spending 0.7 per cent of gross national income on aid.

James Wharton: The Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) spend includes Official Development Assistance (ODA) eligible programmes which are included in the UK’s commitment to spend 0.7% of gross national income per year on aid. Over half the total of CSSF’s expenditure is not included in the 0.7% target as some security, stabilization and defence activities are not ODA eligible.

Department for Education

Bright Tribe Multi Academy Trust

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will place a copy of the 2015 report on Bright Tribe Multi Academy Trust prepared by the Risk Analysis Division of the Education Funding Agency in the Library.

Edward Timpson: The Education Funding Agency published a report about Bright Tribe Trust on 9 November 2016. This report sets out the recommendations made by EFA in December 2015 and includes details of the Trust’s progress in implementing them. A copy of this report is now in the Library.

Department for Education: Departmental Responsibilities

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many projects in operation in her Department are related to the UK's exit of the EU.

Caroline Dinenage: The Prime Minister has instructed all departments to identify potential opportunities that will arise in their areas from EU Exit. My Department, working closely with the Department for Exiting the European Union, is undertaking a variety of analytical and organisational work to understand the impacts of leaving the EU across its entire policy remit. My Department is also making sure that the implications of leaving the EU are understood and accounted for within the context of pre-existing projects. The Government is united in its ambition to deliver a successful withdrawal from the EU and a new relationship with Europe, and departments will work together to deliver this.

Pupils: Camberwell and Peckham

Ms Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the potential financial effect of the proposed changes in the level of per pupil funding on schools in Camberwell and Peckham constituency in each year until 2020-21.

Nick Gibb: Nationally we have protected the core schools budget in real terms to the end of the current Spending Review period, enabling a per-pupil protection for the dedicated schools grant so that the money available for our schools will increase as pupil numbers rise. The DSG allocations for Southwark in 2016-17 are found in the following table: Southwark DSG allocations 2016-17 2016-17 Schools Block Unit of Funding (SBUF) (£)2016-17 Schools Block (£million)6,462232  Allocations for future years will be announced in due course. We believe that schools should be funded on a consistent and predictable basis, which is why we are committed to introducing a national funding formula. The first stage of our two part consultation closed on 17 April. We will publish our response to the first stage of our consultation on a national funding formula for schools shortly. At the same time we will put forward stage two of the consultation, exploring our detailed proposals on the design of the formula. This will include illustrative allocations for all schools and areas. After a full consultation, we will make final decisions and confirm arrangements next year.

Special Educational Needs

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that (a) Warrington Borough Council and (b) other local authorities are fully funded to implement the Government's educational reforms to provision for children and young people with special needs; and if she will make a statement.

Edward Timpson: To ensure that local authorities were fully funded to implement the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) reforms, the Government provided them with a £70million SEND Reform Grant in 2014-15, aimed at helping them to prepare for their new statutory duties. Warrington Borough Council’s share of this grant amounted to £223,867. Through the ‘SEND Implementation Grant’, additional implementation funding of £45.2million was provided in 2014-15; £31.7million was provided in 2015-16 and £35.8million was provided in 2016-17. Warrington Borough Council’s shares of these allocations were £177,094 in 2014-15; £106,362 in 2015-16 and £119,606 in 2016-17. In addition to direct implementation funding for local authorities, the Government has provided: £45million between 2014-15 and 2016-17 for Independent Supporters to help parents and young people through the process of education, health and care assessment and planning;£5million for local authorities to increase opportunities for work experience and supported internships in 2015-16;£6.75million between 2014-15 and 2016-17 to provide grant support for every Parent Carer Forum in England;funding for a network of nine lead authorities in 2015-16 and 2016-17 to coordinate peer support; andfunding for a delivery consortium of voluntary and community sector organisations providing specialist advice and support to local authorities and their partners. The Government has also committed to funding the SEND Implementation Grant, Independent Supporters and Parent Carer Forums for 2017-2018.

Grammar Schools: Urban Areas

Suella Fernandes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what the distance is to the nearest selective school from the centre of each of the towns and cities in England with a population over 75,000; and for those such towns and cities in England for which that distance is less than 10 miles, how many selective schools are within 10 miles of that town or city centre.

Nick Gibb: The requested information can be found in the table below:Distances from major towns and cities in England to the nearest state-funded selective schoolTown / CityDistance to Nearest Grammar School (miles)Number of Grammar Schools within 10 milesBarnsley13.30Basildon7.93Basingstoke13.90Bath26.10Bedford24.20Birkenhead1.17Birmingham1.210Blackburn9.61Blackpool18.40Bolton9.21Bournemouth2.34Bracknell8.96Bradford5.83Brighton and Hove28.20Bristol25.20Burnley6.62Burton upon Trent18.60Bury7.21Cambridge35.20Carlisle17.60Chatham0.414Chelmsford0.42Cheltenham1.75Chester11.80Chesterfield29.30Colchester0.72Coventry10.60Crawley16.60Darlington26.60Derby28.50Doncaster16.40Dudley6.39Eastbourne25.20Exeter16.70Gateshead50.40Gillingham0.914Gloucester0.67Grimsby11.00Guildford17.00Halifax1.43Harlow11.50Harrogate10.20Hartlepool40.40Hastings16.80Hemel Hempstead7.23High Wycombe0.910Huddersfield5.93Ipswich16.20Kingston upon Hull17.20Leeds8.11Leicester19.00Lincoln15.90Liverpool2.77London5.77Luton14.10Maidstone0.510Manchester3.47Mansfield25.30Middlesbrough32.50Milton Keynes10.20Newcastle upon Tyne50.60Newcastle-under-Lyme2.11Northampton17.40Norwich53.90Nottingham21.70Nuneaton13.60Oldham10.20Oxford19.10Peterborough14.50Plymouth0.43Poole2.14Portsmouth33.80Preston15.00Reading0.62Redditch6.94Rochdale6.91Rotherham22.80Salford3.07Scunthorpe13.20Sheffield24.00Shrewsbury16.20Slough0.87Solihull5.46South Shields58.10Southampton20.20Southend-on-Sea0.84Southport17.80St Albans8.61St Helens8.61Stevenage17.20Stockport6.27Stockton-on-Tees31.00Stoke-on-Trent1.31Sunderland53.50Sutton Coldfield0.17Swindon23.50Telford6.52Wakefield6.91Walsall0.48Warrington9.82Watford7.65West Bromwich2.811Weston-Super-Mare42.20Wigan13.00Woking12.60Wolverhampton1.23Worcester14.80Worthing35.60York22.20Notes:Distances are calculated based on the location of the town centre according to Google MapsMajor towns and cities are from the 2016 ONS list based on towns and cities in England with a resident or workday population of more than 75,000 in the 2011 census.

Ministry of Justice

Youth Custody: Restraint Techniques

Christina Rees: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times children have been restrained in secure training centres and young offender institutions, by establishment, in each month since March 2015.

Dr Phillip Lee: Information for 2015/16 is not yet available and will be published in the Youth Justice Statistics report in January 2017.

Young Offender Institutions: Segregation of Prisoners

Christina Rees: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many days children have spent on segregation units in each month since January 2015.

Christina Rees: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many times children have been placed in segregation units in each month since January 2015.

Dr Phillip Lee: The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Youth Custody: Restraint Techniques

Christina Rees: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many injuries were sustained by children during restraint in each custodial institution in each month since March 2015.

Dr Phillip Lee: Information on injuries sustained during restraint is published regularly on Gov.uk. Data for 2015/16 will be published in due course.

Criminal Injuries Compensation

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment she has made of the effect of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme's policy on unspent convictions on victims of crime.

Dr Phillip Lee: The Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2012 (the Scheme) is a government funded scheme which is designed to compensate blameless victims of violent crime in Great Britain.The rules of the Scheme and the tariff for awards paid under it are approved by Parliament. The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) administers the Scheme and decides all claims independently of ministers and Parliament.Stringent eligibility criteria exist to ensure that the Scheme remains sustainable in order to help the victims most in need, as well as to protect the tax payer.

Oakhill Secure Training Centre

Christina Rees: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the timeframe is for the sale of the G4S contract to run Oakhill secure training centre.

Dr Phillip Lee: I refer the Hon Member to my answer to PQ 44427.

Crime: Victims

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps her Department is taking to (a) monitor and (b) improve compliance with the Code of Practice for Victims of Crime among criminal justice agencies with statutory duties under that code.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what performance data her Department has (a) requested and (b) received from criminal justice agencies on their levels of compliance with the Code of Practice for Victims of Crime in each of the last two years; and if she will publish that data.

Dr Phillip Lee: Victims deserve the best possible support to help them cope with what they have been through and recover as much as possible. That is why we have protected the victims' budget and given PCCs the flexibility to decide which services are needed in their local area. Also under the revised Victims' Code published in 2015, victims of all criminal offences are now entitled to support from a wide range of organisations. The Victims’ Code is a statutory code of practice. It sets out the services to be provided to victims of crime, including how to complain if they are dissatisfied. Service providers are required to comply with the code. Part of the role of the Commissioner for Victims and Witnesses is to keep under review the operation of the Code. The Ministry of Justice requires Police and Crime Commissioners, as part of the monitoring of grant agreements for the delivery of local services for victims, to confirm they are compliant with the Code.

Social Security Benefits: Appeals

Colleen Fletcher: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of appeals to the Tribunals Service from appellants in (a) Coventry, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England in relation to (i) personal independence payments, (ii) employment and support allowance, (iii) income support, (iv) jobseeker's allowance and (v) tax credits were successful in the latest period for which figures are available.

Dr Phillip Lee: Information about the volume and outcomes of appeals to the First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support) is published on Gov.uk The table below provides a further breakdown of this information.Proportion of appeals decided in favour of the appellant between April and June 2016 6 PIP1ESA2ISJSATax Credits3  Coventry76%67%20%67%64%  West Midlands 466%47%36%60%41%  England 566%59%49%45%41%Based on cases cleared at tribunal hearingSSCS data are normally registered to the venue nearest to the appellant’s home address. We cannot retrieve data based on the appellant’s actual address, but can produce reports detailing the number of cases that were dealt with at one of our Regional centres.1 Personal Independence Payment (New Claim Appeals), which replaces Disability Living Allowance, and was introduced on 8 April 2013, also includes Personal Independence Claims (Reassessments).2 Includes Employment Support Allowance and Employment Support Allowance (Reassessments).3 Includes Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit.4West Midlands includes the venues: Birmingham, Coventry, Hereford, Stoke, Wolverhampton, Worcester, Shrewsbury, Nuneaton, Worcester (Fownes), Kidderminster, Coventry (CMCB), Walsall, Worcester (Magistrate’s Court), Hereford (Magistrate’s Court).5 Excludes SSCS Wales Region and Scotland.6 Proportion of decisions in favour represents the number of cases found in favour of the appellant as a percentage of those cleared at hearing. Cleared at tribunal hearing excludes those cases disposed of without the need of a hearing (i.e. decisions retrospectively superseded by the 1st Tier Agencies and those stuck out or withdrawn prior to hearing)Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale case management system and is the best data that is available.The data may differ slightly to that of the published statistics as this data was run on a different date.

Immigration: Appeals

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether she has made an assessment of the financial means of the users of each of the Chambers of the First-tier Tribunal by Chamber in each of the last three years.

Dr Phillip Lee: Before introducing or increasing fees in any Chambers of the First-tier Tribunal the Government carries out full public consultation and publishes impact assessments detailing the costs and benefits of the proposed policy on all those affected.

Employment Tribunals Service: Fees and Charges

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether her Department has made an assessment of the effect of the requirement to pay employment tribunal fees on the (a) financial and (b) psychological wellbeing of people diagnosed with cancer.

Dr Phillip Lee: The Government is undertaking a post implementation review of the introduction of fees for proceedings in the Employment Tribunals. The review will consider, so far as is possible, the impact the fees have had on those with protected characteristics and the types of case they bring.

Tickets: Touting

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many (a) prosecutions and (b) successful prosecutions there have been under the Computer Misuse Act 1990 on the misuse of bots for the harvesting of event tickets through primary ticketing platforms.

Mr Sam Gyimah: It is not possible to identify from centrally held data the number of defendants prosecuted and convicted under Computer Misuse Act specifically related to misuse of bots for the harvesting of event tickets without incurring disproportionate cost.

Prime Minister

Domestic Visits: Copeland

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Prime Minister, if the Cabinet will visit Copeland constituency.

Mrs Theresa May: There are no current plans to do so.

Ministry of Defence

Ministry of Defence: Russian Language

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many interpreters and translators with Russian language skills are (a) employed by his Department and (b) members of the armed forces.

Harriett Baldwin: The Ministry of Defence currently employs five individuals in interpreter roles requiring Russian language skills. All of these individuals are members of the Armed Forces.The Department does not employ translators with Russian language skills. It can, however, call upon qualified personnel or contractors to provide this service as and when required.

Yemen: Military Intervention

Ms Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the role is of UK military liaison officers with responsibility for liaison with the Saudi Arabian military; and what role those military liaison officers have in the selection of targets relating to operations in Yemen.

Sir Michael Fallon: We have deployed a small number of military personnel as liaison officers in Saudi Headquarters to provide the UK with greater insight into Saudi processes and operations.These liaison officers are not involved in carrying out strikes, directing or conducting operations in Yemen or selecting targets, and are not involved in Saudi target decision-making.All UK Service personnel remain under UK command and control.

War Pensions

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to protect war pensions from the effect of changes in the level of funding to his Department.

Harriett Baldwin: The War Pensions Scheme (WPS) and Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) provide compensation for any injury, illness or death which is caused by service. The WPS, which provides compensation for incidents before 5 April 2005, has protected funding as part of the Department's Spending Round 2015 settlement. The AFCS is funded through employer contributions linked to the Department's pay bill and we are committed to a fair compensation scheme.

Military Bases: Glencorse

Owen Thompson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 18 November 2016 to Question 52240, in what format information on Hard Facilities management is held for financial years earlier than 2011-12.

Mark Lancaster: Financial information on Hard Facilities Management Expenditure prior to 2011-12 is held by regional contracts and not individual sites.

Military Bases: Glencorse

Owen Thompson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 18 November 2016 to Question 52240, in what format information on project expenditure in financial years earlier than 2007-08 is held by his Deparment.

Mark Lancaster: Financial information on project expenditure before 2007-08 is held by regional contracts and not by individual sites.

Armed Forces: Housing

Owen Thompson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how much his Department spent on service family accommodation, by region, in each of the last 15 years.

Owen Thompson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which sites have received funding for service family accommodation, by region, in each of the last 15 years.

Mark Lancaster: This information is not held in the format requested.

Armed Forces: Housing

Owen Thompson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which facilities are included in his Department's definition of service family accommodation.

Harriett Baldwin: The Ministry of Defence's Service Family Accommodation (SFA) includes flats, houses, bungalows and maisonettes.All SFA have reasonably modern kitchens and bathrooms and carpets, curtains and cookers are provided. SFA may be occupied in furnished, part furnished, or unfurnished states and the charge is adjusted accordingly.

Defence

Dr   Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps his Department is taking to reduce the publication of the UK's defence mechanisms in the media for reasons of national security.

Harriett Baldwin: The Ministry of Defence has robust processes, to make sure that information disclosed in public does not jeopardise operations, personnel or national security, while respecting the need for transparency and public and Parliamentary accountability. This is complemented by the Defence and Security Media Advisory (DSMA) Notice System. This is a voluntary code between Government Departments and the national media, designed to prevent the inadvertent public disclosure of information which would damage national security.

Ministry of Defence: Departmental Responsibilities

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many projects in operation in his Department are related to the UK's exit of the EU.

Harriett Baldwin: The Ministry of Defence is working closely with the Department for Exiting the European Union to ensure that the full range of opportunities are taken, and risks mitigated, across Defence. We have established a central team to coordinate this work.

Estonia: Armed Forces

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when he expects the Framework Battalion, together with its armoured component, will be in place in Estonia.

Sir Michael Fallon: The UK's Framework Battalion will be in Estonia from Spring 2017. Working with the militaries of our Estonian hosts and contributing Allies (Denmark and France), this "Enhanced Forward Presence" will form a defensive, but combat capable, NATO force.

Awards for Valour (Protection) Bill 2016-17

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make the provisions contained in the Awards for Valour (Protection) Bill his Department's policy.

Harriett Baldwin: The Secretary of State has made it clear he and the Department are fully behind the Bill. The Government will be working with the hon. Member for Dartford to secure its passage into law.

Department for Work and Pensions

Social Security Benefits: Telephone Services

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress his Department has made on its review of the numbering policy pertaining to 0345 and 0800 telephone numbers provided for benefit claimants to contact his Department.

Caroline Nokes: The Department’s current policy is that calls to claim benefit by telephone should be free to a customer so it uses 0800 free phone numbers where these calls typically take longer. The Department uses 0345 telephone numbers where its customers call for other reasons, and these are calls that typically take less time to resolve. 0345 telephone numbers are included in many landline and mobile call minute packages. Where customers do have to pay to access our 0345 services it will never be more than the cost of a local call rate call. Where possible concerns are raised about call charges to our enquiry line 0345 numbers, we will offer to call a customer back. The Department is undertaking a review of the way its customers transact with the Department and the numbering policy is included within that. The review is exploring the introduction of alternative contact channels, which would be more cost effective for customers to contact us.

Social Security Benefits: Telephone Services

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of making all social security telephone lines freephone.

Caroline Nokes: The Department’s current policy is that calls to claim benefit by telephone should be free so it uses 0800 numbers for these calls. The Department uses 0345 telephone numbers where its customers call for other reasons, and these are calls that typically take less time to resolve. 0345 telephone numbers are included in many landline and mobile call minute packages. Where customers do have to pay to access our 0345 services it will never be more than the cost of a local rate call. Where possible concerns are raised about call charges to our enquiry line 0345 numbers, we will offer to call a customer back.

Social Security Benefits: Telephone Services

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he has had with private telephone companies to ensure social security enquiry lines are maintained at the lowest possible cost to the caller.

Caroline Nokes: The Department’s current policy is that calls to claim benefit by telephone should be free so it uses 0800 numbers for these calls. The Department uses 0345 telephone numbers where its customers call for other reasons, and these are calls that typically take less time to resolve. The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has not had any recent conversations with private telephone companies to negotiate a lower rate. This is because 0345 telephone numbers are included in many landline and mobile call minute packages. Where customers do have to pay to access our 0345 services it will never be more than the cost of a local rate call. Where possible concerns are raised about call charges to our enquiry line 0345 numbers, we will offer to call a customer back.

Children: Maintenance

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the amount of child maintenance arrears is in (a) England and (b) Ellesmere Port and Neston constituency.

Caroline Nokes: As at June 2016, the total value of arrears on Child Support Agency cases in (a) England, stood at £2,928.47m and (b) Ellesmere Port and Neston constituency, stood at £7.14m. Information on geographical breakdowns on the Child Maintenance Service is not routinely recorded for management information purposes and could only be provided at disproportionate cost. Notes:1) Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10,000.2) Cases have been allocated to a parliamentary constituency by matching the residential postcode of the parent with care or non-resident parent for all cases administered on the CS2 and CSCS computer systems and cases managed off system to the Office for National Statistics Postcode Directory.

Pensions

Natalie McGarry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will carry out an impact assessment on the freedom and choice pension reforms.

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how he plans to assess the success of Pension Wise in ensuring that people have been sufficiently informed about their likely pension income in retirement.

Richard Harrington: Government has already assessed, and continues to assess, the impact of the pension freedoms.In advance of the introduction of the freedoms a Tax Information and Impact Note was published by HM Revenue and Customs. This is available on the Gov.uk website.An impact assessment was also published for amendments to the 2015 Pension Schemes Act which covered transfers from private sector defined benefit schemes. This is available on the Parliament website.Looking forward, HMRC publishes quarterly releases on flexible withdrawals from pensions, and the Financial Conduct Authority also produces regular bulletins on retirement income market data. My Department regularly meets with other government departments, non-departmental public bodies, regulators, think tanks and industry representative groups to consider how industry and individuals are responding to the freedoms.The Government committed in its response to the Work and Pensions Select Committee in December 2015 to publish findings from the Pension Wise evaluation research in 2017. This work is now underway with Ipsos MORI and the early findings covering customer experiences of the service were published in October 2016 on the Gov.uk website. Further publications from this programme will follow in 2017 including a comparison between users of the service compared with non-users to identify the impact of the service on understanding of the new pension freedoms.

Child Poverty Unit

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what progress has been made by the Child Poverty Unit; and if he will make a statement.

Damian Hinds: The Prime Minister is clear that tackling poverty and disadvantage, and delivering real social reform, is a priority for this Government.We know that work is the best route out of poverty and we are making progress. The number of children living in workless households is down by 557,000 since 2010 and the employment rate in the UK continues to run at a record high of 74.5%, with wages rising faster than inflation.

State Retirement Pensions: Females

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much (a) basic and (b) additional state pension per week that woman born on 5 April 1953 would receive with 35 years' worth of both National Insurance Contributions and contracting-in to the state second pension; and how much in the new state pension a woman born on 6 April 1953 would receive with 35 years' worth of both National Insurance Contributions and contracting-in to the state second pension.

Richard Harrington: The new State Pension has been introduced for people reaching their State Pension age from 6 April 2016 onwards; this question asks what the difference would be for a woman reaching State Pension age either side of its introduction.In this case a woman born on 5 April 1953 with a 35 year contracted-in National Insurance record would receive £119.30 a week in basic State Pension plus an amount of additional State Pension. We are unable to quantify the amount of additional State Pension she would receive as it would be related to her past earnings.For the woman born on 6 April 1953, the Starting Amount calculation for the new State Pension means that she would receive at least as much under the new State Pension as she would have done under the previous system. It is likely that her Starting Amount would be based on the old State Pension system rules as she has never been contracted-out. So, as for the woman born on 5 April 1953, this would be the full basic State Pension (£119.30 a week) plus an amount of additional State Pension which would have depended on her past earnings.It is likely that the two women you have described would receive the same amount at the date of the award.

Department for Work and Pensions: Telephone Services

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and which public telephone lines operated by his Department are higher rate lines; how many calls have been made to those lines in the last 12 months for which data is available; what average duration of calls was to each such line; and what amount of money was charged to all callers using each such line.

Caroline Nokes: The Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) current policy is that calls to claim benefit should be free so it uses 0800 telephone numbers for these calls. The Department uses 0345 telephone numbers where its customers call for other reasons, and these are calls that typically take less time to resolve. If a customer raises concerns over the cost of a call, we will offer to call them back. Calls to 0345 numbers cost no more than a standard geographic call, and count towards any free or inclusive minutes in a caller’s landline or mobile phone contract. Therefore we are unable to calculate the overall cost to callers to our 0345 service lines. The Department currently provides around four hundred 0345 telephone numbers. During the period 01/11/2015-31/10/2016 DWP received over 34 million calls to its 0345 telephone numbers and, therefore, calculating the average call duration for each line would incur a disproportionate cost to the department.

Occupational Pensions

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps have been taken to make contact with people who had previously been enrolled automatically into a workplace pension scheme since 2012 but have since withdrawn from it.

Richard Harrington: Although employers must automatically enrol their eligible workers into a workplace pension scheme, individuals who genuinely believe it is not in their best interests to save in their current circumstances can opt-out within one month of being enrolled. However, the numbers of people opting-out have been much lower than expected and less than one in ten employees who have been automatically enrolled have chosen not to continue to save through automatic enrolment. People can also chose to cease saving at any time if they feel that this is right in their circumstances.The Department has commissioned research to monitor the extent of opt-out and cessation as part of its biennial Employers’ Pension Provision survey. The findings from the latest survey (2015) are available online at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/employers-pension-provision-survey-2015.Alongside this monitoring, the Department has commissioned more in-depth research to explore the reasons why some employees have chosen to stop saving. The findings are available in the report “Automatic enrolment: qualitative research with employers staging in 2014” which can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/automatic-enrolment-qualitative-research-with-employers-staging-in-2014.It is important that we do not lose touch with those who have opted-out of automatic enrolment and as such, employers are required to re-enrol all eligible workers, including those who chose to opt-out every three years. This prompts individuals to regularly reconsider their saving arrangements and reminds employers of their on-going automatic enrolment duties to their staff. This process has already started amongst the largest employers and The Pensions Regulator publishes monthly updates on the numbers of employees being re-enrolled in its Declaration of Compliance Monthly Report. The latest figures are available online at http://www.thepensionsregulator.gov.uk/docs/automatic-enrolment-declaration-of-compliance-monthly-report.pdf

Employment and Support Allowance

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much he plans to spend on employment support for claimants of employment and support allowance in each of the next three years.

Penny Mordaunt: The Department does not organise its management accounts by spending on each claimant group so the information is not available in the format requested. However, as set out during the passage of the Welfare Reform and Work Act 2016, in addition to existing support we are investing in additional practical support for claimants with limited capability for work from April 2017, rising from £60m in 2017/18 to £100m in 2020/21. Employment support for claimants of Employment and Support Allowance includes provision in Jobcentre Plus, contracted employment programmes, and other spending such as Access to Work.

Social Security Benefits: Terminal Illnesses

Richard  Arkless: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, which terminal illnesses he plans to make exempt from benefits assessments.

Penny Mordaunt: Terminally ill people can already claim Attendance Allowance, Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payment, Employment and Support Allowance and Universal Credit using a fast track procedure rather than the normal assessment process.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Agriculture: Subsidies

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much in total was paid under the Basic Payments Scheme in England in 2015 for (a) lowlands, (b) severely disadvantaged areas and (c) moorlands; and for each of those areas, how many farmers received such payments and what the (i) average payment per farmer was and (ii) maximum and minimum payments were in each English county.

George Eustice: The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

European Union: Treaties

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Government has plans for the Precautionary Principle set out in Article 191 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to be transposed into UK law when the UK leaves the EU; and if she will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Article 191 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union requires that EU legislation on the environment be based on the precautionary principle. The Prime Minister has announced a Repeal Bill to convert EU law into domestic British law, to provide certainty for consumers, workers and businesses by maintaining existing laws.

Beverage Containers: Recycling

Danny Kinahan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy to introduce the bottle deposit return system proposed by Surfers Against Sewage.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: There are currently no plans to introduce a deposit return system. We will continue to review new evidence regarding such schemes.

Waste Disposal: Seas and Oceans

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department plans to take to maintain protection for coastal towns from the sea dumping of waste after the UK leaves the EU.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The UK’s Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 (MCAA) includes a marine licensing regime, under Part 4, for most marine activities. The Act regulates dumping of waste at sea including navigational dredging and disposal under the Waste Framework Directive. The Prime Minister has announced a Repeal Bill to convert EU law into domestic British law, to provide certainty for consumers, workers and businesses by maintaining existing laws. As domestic legislation the MCAA will continue to be in place when the UK has left the EU. There is no current intention to change the regulatory framework in respect of the dumping of waste in the marine environment. In Scotland this is covered by the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010.

Environment Protection: EU Law

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans her Department has to retain the effect of EU environmental directives in UK law after the UK leaves the EU.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Until exit negotiations are concluded, the UK remains a full member of the European Union (EU) and all the rights and obligations of EU membership remain in force. The Prime Minister has announced a Repeal Bill to convert EU law into domestic British law. This provides certainty for consumers, workers and businesses by maintaining existing laws wherever practicable.

Waste Disposal

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she plans to take to ensure that the UK meets the EU target to reuse and recycle 50 per cent of household waste by 2020.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The UK Recycling rate has increased from 11% at the turn of the century to 44.9% now. This increase is thanks in large part to the hard work of local authorities and householders to recycle more. The Government is committed to meeting the EU target to increase the preparing for reuse or recycling of wastes from households to 50% by 2020 and we regularly review progress to achieving this. Local authorities are best placed to determine the most appropriate waste collection and recycling services in their area and we work closely with them and the Waste and Recycling Action Programme (WRAP) to promote best practice and to increase the quantity and quality of material collected for recycling.

Clean Air Zones

Alex Chalk: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy to use revenues from clean air zones to promote cycling and walking and other healthy sustainable transport alternatives.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: It is already a requirement under the Transport Act 2000 that the net proceeds of any charging schemes made under the Act are only available to the local authority for the purpose of facilitating the achievement of its local transport policies. This can include the promotion of cycling and walking and other sustainable transport alternatives.

Ivory: Sales

Mrs Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the consultation on bans of sales of items containing ivory dated between 1947 and the present day will start; how long people will be given to respond to that consultation; and if she will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government will consult on the ban on sales of items containing ivory dated between 1947 and the present day early next year as a first step in meeting the manifesto commitment to press for a total ban on ivory sales. Details of the consultation duration will be announced in due course.

Aviation: Air Pollution

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with the Department for Transport on giving the Environmental Agency responsibility as an independent aviation air quality authority.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Defra has had no discussions with the Department for Transport about giving the Environment Agency responsibility as an independent aviation air quality authority.

Animal Welfare: Roads

Dr   Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to ensure (a) high welfare standards and (b) access to food and water for tethered animals situated near main highways.

George Eustice: The Animal Welfare Act 2006 makes it an offence to cause any unnecessary suffering to animals or to fail to provide for their welfare. In addition, the statutory Code of Practice for the Welfare of Horses, Ponies, Donkeys and Their Hybrids includes advice on how to tether such animals in order to meet their welfare needs, as required by the Animal Welfare Act 2006. If anyone is concerned about the way a horse is tethered they should report it to the relevant local authority who have powers under the Animal Welfare Act to investigate such matters or to the RSPCA or World Horse Welfare who can also investigate such matters.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how Ministers in her Department receive briefings from the Rural Payments Agency on delays in farm payments to commons farmers.

George Eustice: Ministers received verbal and written briefings from the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) and have had regular meetings to discuss all aspects of the implementation of the Basic Payment Scheme 2015 and 2016, including commons issues. The RPA is working closely with stakeholders who have an interest in commons regarding payments to those with common land.

Air Pollution: Greater Manchester

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many measured exceedances of the annual mean air pollution objective for fine particles have there been in Greater Manchester in each year since 2009-10.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: There have been no measured exceedances of the annual mean air pollution objective for fine particles in Greater Manchester since 2009-10.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Departmental Responsibilities

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many projects in operation in her Department are related to the UK's exit of the EU.

George Eustice: Defra is the domestic department most affected by EU Exit, with some 80% of our work framed by EU legislation and a quarter of EU laws applying to our sectors. A majority of policy staff within the core Department are now supporting EU Exit related work, and Defra’s EU Exit Programme has been set up to manage and coordinate this work.

Climate Change

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will commission and publish a comprehensive study of the potential cost to the UK economy of a changing climate; and if she will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government currently has no plans to undertake a comprehensive study into the potential cost of climate change to the UK economy. The Stern Review: the Economics of Climate Change, an independent review commissioned by the then UK government and published in 2006, established the relationship between increasing global greenhouse gases emissions and higher costs due to the impacts of climate change. There are large uncertainties associated with this type of assessment, but the overall conclusion is that the benefits of strong, early action to avoid climate change considerably outweigh the costs. The Government’s focus is therefore on the implementation of cost-effective actions to reduce the UK’s greenhouse gas emissions and to ensure that the UK and its economy are resilient to unavoidable changes in the climate. As required under the UK Climate Change Act 2008, we will publish our second Climate Change Risk Assessment next year.

Agriculture: Climate Change

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential future effect of a changing climate on growing and farming practices in the UK; and if she will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Under the Climate Change Act 2008, the Government has a statutory role to produce, on a five-yearly cycle, an assessment of the risks for the UK arising from climate change. The first Climate Change Risk Assessment (CCRA) was published in 2012 and the second will shortly be completed when the CCRA Government report is laid before Parliament next year. The underpinning evidence report for the second CCRA was published by the Adaptation Sub-Committee of the Committee on Climate Change in July. Both publications consider the potential future effect of climate change on growing and farming practices in the UK.

Air Pollution: Greater Manchester

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much air quality grant funding has been awarded from central government to each local authority in Greater Manchester in each year since 2009-10.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Since 2009-10, local authorities in Greater Manchester have received a total of £509,745 of central Government funding through the Air Quality Grant. The table below sets out the amount awarded to relevant local authorities by year. YearLA Amount 2009-10Greater Manchester Group£ 83,785.002009-10Manchester City Council£ 3,600.002009-10Salford City Council£ 10,250.002009-10Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council£ 7,000.002009-10Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council£ 35,000.002010-11Oldham Metropolitan Borough Council£ 8,200.002010-11Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council£ 15,000.002011-12Wigan Metropolitan Borough Council£ 50,950.002011-12Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council£ 190,000.002012-13Salford City Council£ 5,960.002015-16Greater Manchester Combined Authority£ 100,000.00

Derelict Land: Walsall

Mr David Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she expects a decision will be made by the Planning Inspectorate on the public inquiry into the former Willenhall gas works land; and if she will make a statement.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: I am unable to comment on ongoing legal matters.

Climate Change

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate she has made of the potential cost to the UK economy of a changing climate over the next 20 years.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: I refer the hon. Member to the reply previously given on 21 November 2016, PQ UIN 52824.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Local Government: Dorset

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many meetings officials of his Department have had with (a) elected Councillors from Dorset's nine Councils and (b) employees of Dorset's nine Councils since 1 September 2016; and at which point the local Government reorganisation in Dorset has been discussed.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Local Government: Dorset

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, at whose request his proposed meeting with elected members and employees of Dorset Council, for 30 November 2016 has been arranged; and what the agenda is for that meeting.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Homelessness: Newham

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what information his Department holds on the number of homeless people in (a) East Ham constituency and (b) the London Borough of Newham with a (i) disability and (ii) mental health condition.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

HM Treasury

Ministry of Defence: Land

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether any alternative funding arrangements provided by his Department for the Ministry of Defence's Footprint Strategy will be dependent on the Defence Infrastructure Organisation fulfilling particular key performance indicators.

Mr David Gauke: Any alternative funding arrangements will be dependent on an in-depth assessment and business case.

Bank Services

Craig Williams: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to make representations to the British Bankers Association on reviewing the industry protocol on access to banking.

Simon Kirby: On 10 November the British Bankers’ Association published Professor Russel Griggs’ independent ‘one year on’ review of the Access to Banking Protocol. The government is pleased to see that the industry is committing to further improvements to protect those affected by bank branch closures. While the decision to close a branch remains a commercial judgement for banks, the impact on communities must be understood, considered and mitigated where possible.

Financial Services

Rob Marris: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential demand for Mutual Guarantee Societies is in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Rob Marris: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the introduction of Mutual Guarantee Societies on lending in to SMEs.

Simon Kirby: The Chancellor has not made an assessment of the impact of the introduction of Mutual Guarantee Societies on lending to SMEs or on the potential demand for Mutual Guarantee Societies in the UK. However, the FCA has received representations on this issue and officials plan to discuss this further with them.

Financial Services: Self-employed

Rob Marris: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the major barriers to self-employed people accessing bank lending.

Simon Kirby: The Treasury has not made such an assessment, but monitors lending to businesses of all sizes, including those run by the self-employed, from both banks and alternative finance providers. The British Business Bank also monitors closely and publishes reports on lending conditions, in line with its objective to make finance markets work better for small businesses.

VAT: Sanitary Protection

Natalie McGarry: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what discussions he has had with the European Commission since the EU referendum on its timetable for proposals to allow member states to set their own VAT rate on sanitary products.

Jane Ellison: Since the referendum the UK has continued to raise the issue of a VAT zero-rate for women’s sanitary products with the European Commission in various fora.

Revenue and Customs: Telephone Services

Frank Field: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and which public telephone lines operated by HM Revenue and Customs are higher rate lines; how many calls have been made to those lines in the last 12 months for which data is available; what the average duration of calls was to each such line; and how much was charged to all callers using each such line.

Jane Ellison: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) no longer operates higher rate telephone lines. All 0845 HMRC helplines were taken out of service in December 2014 and on 30 June 2015. HMRC decommissioned its 0845 helplines in line with HM Government and OfCom guidance.

Personal Savings

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the cash savings market study, published by the Financial Conduct Authority in January 2015, how quickly he expects any benefits to be experienced by savers as a result of changes introduced.

Simon Kirby: In January 2015, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) published its Cash Savings Market Study, which found that competition in the cash savings market was not working well for many consumers. In response, the FCA has consulted on and are introducing new rules and guidance from 1 December 2016 to improve firms’ methods of disclosing information to customers on savings accounts and their interest rates. The rules will make it easier for customers to see what the interest rate is on their account and will place stricter provisions on firms to ensure customers are informed about cuts to their rates.

Tax Avoidance: Self-employed

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to announce the next steps in reforming IR35 investigations.

Jane Ellison: The Government confirmed at Autumn Statement 2016 that, following consultation, it will reform the off-payroll working rules in the public sector (often known as IR35) from 6 April 2017, by moving responsibility for operating them, and paying the correct tax, to the body paying the worker’s company. This reform will help to tackle the high levels of non-compliance with the current rules and means that those working in a similar way to employees in the public sector will pay the same taxes as employees.

Sterling: Exchange Rates

Tim Farron: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what effect recent changes in the sterling rate has had on the UK's contribution to the EU.

Mr David Gauke: Member States’ contributions to the EU Budget are made in national currency based on an exchange rate fixed on the last working day before the start of the EU Budget year. There are no subsequent changes to the exchange rate in that year. Recent changes in the exchange rate have had no impact on our payments to the EU in 2016. As the OBR set out in their November 2016 forecast, changes in the exchange rate will affect the sterling value of euro-denominated payments, abatements and receipts. Overall, the OBR have revised down their forecast for the UK’s net contribution to the EU, which includes receipts to the UK public sector, over 2016-17 to 2020-21 by £0.3bn.

Ports: Import Duties

Grant Shapps: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of eliminating customs tariffs at British ports after the UK leaves the EU.

Mr David Gauke: As we leave the EU, we will want the best possible arrangement for trade in goods and services with the EU and other countries. The Government is committed to minimising costs to business and limiting the barriers to trade. The detail of future UK customs policy, including tariff rates, is for now contingent on negotiations with the European Union and the Government will not provide a running commentary on these negotiations.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Economic Situation: North East

Julie Elliott: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU on the economy in the North East.

Mr David Jones: The Department for Exiting the European Union, working with officials across government, continues to undertake a wide range of data analyses to inform the UK's position for the upcoming negotiations with our EU partners. We have been clear that we will not provide a running commentary that might undermine our negotiating position.

Higher Education: North West

Jim McMahon: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of exiting the EU on higher education research and development in the North West.

Mr David Jones: We have been clear that we want to create an environment in which the UK as a whole can continue to be a world leader in research, science and the tertiary education sector more broadly.There is no immediate change to the rights of UK universities and their students and staff from EU countries. UK researchers can still apply for Horizon 2020 projects, with the certainty that any funding will be guaranteed by the UK Government for the cycle of the programme.We are speaking to research institutes, regional and national groups and businesses up and down the country, to establish the priority issues and opportunities for the whole of the UK.

Industry

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2016 to Question 51791, if he will define what is considered to be a network industry.

Mr David Jones: Network industries include communications, energy and transport sectors. As well as being important in their own right, they are critical enablers of activity across the economy as a whole.

EU Law

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, if he will make time available for hon. Members to debate the potential merits of repealing EU legislation other than the European Communities Act 1972 alongside consideration of the Great Repeal Bill.

Mr David Jones: The Government will bring forward legislation in the next session that, when enacted, will repeal the European Communities Act 1972 on the day we leave the EU. This ‘Great Repeal Bill’ will end the authority of EU law and return power to the UK.More details on the timing of this domestic legislation will be set out to Parliament in due course.

EU Law

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what time period his Department has set aside to draft EU legislation into UK law.

Mr David Jones: The Government will bring forward legislation in the next session that, when enacted, will repeal the European Communities Act 1972 on the day we leave the EU. This ‘Great Repeal Bill’ will end the authority of EU law and return power to the UK.More details on the timing of this domestic legislation will be set out to Parliament in due course.

Department for International Trade

Trade Agreements

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment he has made of the Government's capability of negotiating trade agreements.

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Question of 30 June 2016, when he plans to respond to that Question; and for what reasons that Question has not yet been answered.

Greg Hands: I apologise for the time it has taken to answer the hon Member’s question UIN 41519. This was due to an administrative error.I refer the hon Member for West Bromwich East to the answer I gave to the hon Member for Bristol West 13 October 2016, UIN: 46432.

Overseas Investment: Treaties

Royston Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 17 November 2016 to Question 52404, what discussions he has had with officials of his Department to prepare a framework for bilateral investment treaties when the UK leaves the EU.

Greg Hands: The Government is currently reviewing its trade and investment policy and will, in due course, consider all options in the design of future bilateral trade and investment agreements. Until the UK leaves the EU, we will remain subject to EU trade & investment agreements and policy.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Ministerial Policy Advisers

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 16 November 2016 to Question 50349, what the (a) job title and (b) specific responsibilities and associated remuneration was of the unpaid advisors that recently left her Department.

Matt Hancock: The Secretary of State appointed an Advisory Group to help inform the Government's deliberations on Charter Review. The group met six times and the Terms of Reference for the Group were published on the 12th July 2015. The Terms of Reference are available via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/445912/TERMS_OF_REFERENCE.pdf . The group members were not paid. Sir David Clementi was also appointed by the Secretary of State to undertake the Review of Governance and Regulation of the BBC. The Terms of Reference were published on the 1st March 2016 and are available on page 85 of the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/504003/PDF_FINAL_20160224_AM_Clementi_Review.pdf . Sir David was not paid for conducting the review.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Liverpool City Region

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many people working for her Department or its executive agencies in the Liverpool City Region on a (a) directly employed, (b) agency or (c) outsourced basis are paid less than the living wage as defined by the Living Wage Foundation; and how many such people are employed on zero-hours contracts.

Matt Hancock: DCMS or its executive agencies do not employ staff to work in the Liverpool City Region.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Staff

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 14 November 2016 to Question 51894, how many officials in her Department work in the EU team.

Matt Hancock: There are 14 officials in the department's EU team. Officials across DCMS will be exploring the opportunities that Brexit creates for their policy areas.

Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage

Sir Jeffrey M. Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans the Government has to ratify the UNESCO Convention on the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage; what discussions she has had with Cabinet colleagues on that ratification; and if she will make a statement.

Tracey Crouch: Government remains committed to reconsidering the case for ratification of the 2001 Convention on the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage. A decision on timescales for reviewing the Convention will be made in late Spring 2017.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport: Departmental Responsibilities

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how many projects in operation in her Department are related to the UK's exit of the EU.

Matt Hancock: DCMS is working on Brexit issues covering the full range of the Department's sectors.

Sports

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what representations she has received from sports bodies to discuss the potential effect of the UK leaving the EU; and if she will make a statement.

Tracey Crouch: The UK’s negotiations for exiting the EU are complex and the Government is focused on securing the best deal for Britain. Together with the Department for Exiting the EU we are analysing all the impacts of leaving the EU and have discussed areas of interest with sporting stakeholders.

Sportsgrounds

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of introducing safe-standing facilities at higher tier sports stadia; and if she will make a statement.

Tracey Crouch: The Government believes that all-seater stadiums are the best means to ensure the safety and security of spectators at football grounds in England and Wales. All-seater stadiums have helped improve crowd management, crowd behaviour and policing. They provide better and more comfortable facilities to enjoy football matches, which has helped encourage inclusivity and diversity amongst those attending.

Arts: EU Grants and Loans

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, which UK projects have received how much funding from the Creative Europe Programme in each of the last six years; and where each such project was based.

Matt Hancock: A database of all projects supported EU-wide under the Culture Programme is available here: http://ec.europa.eu/programmes/creative-europe/projects.

Arts

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what proportion of the UK's GVA was contributed by the creative industries in each of the last six years.

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much the creative industries have added to the UK economy in each of the last six years.

Matt Hancock: The table below shows the estimated contribution of the Creative Industries to the UK economy (GVA) over the past six years. Gross value added (GVA) for Creative IndustriesUnit: £m / %Years: 2010 - 2015Coverage: UK 201020112012201320142015Number65,18869,39873,03377,88581,62587,350Percentage of UK GVA 4.6 4.8 4.9 5.0 5.0 5.3Notes:1. Data are in current prices (i.e. have not been adjusted for inflation).2. 2015 GVA is based on the output measure of GVA to allow consistency with the sector measures for 2015. This is aligned to average GVA up to and including 2014 (last Supply Use balanced year) but then uses growth in the output measure as a proxy for GVA beyond that. The 2015 figure therefore differs from ABML. 2010 – 2014 GVA estimates use balanced GVA at current prices (ABML).

Department of Health

Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many referrals ended that entered Improving Access to Psychological Therapies services treatment for each mental health cluster by clinical commissioning group in each year since 2010.

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many referrals ended in Improving Access to Psychological Therapies services for each mental health cluster by clinical commissioning group in each year since 2010.

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many referrals were received by Improving Access to Psychological Therapies services for each mental health cluster by clinical commissioning group in each year since 2010.

Nicola Blackwood: The data is not available in the format requested.

Strokes

Michelle Donelan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what condition-specific strategies are in place for stroke care to help the Five Year Forward View to deliver its strategic aims.

David Mowat: The NHS Five Year Forward View recognises that quality of care, including stroke care, can be variable and that patients’ needs are changing and new treatment options are emerging. The Five Year Forward View sets out high level objectives to address these issues, but is not condition-specific. Action is being taken to ensure the progress made on stroke continues. This includes; - ongoing work in virtually all parts of the country to organise acute stroke care to ensure that all stroke patients, regardless of where they live or what time of the day or week they have their stroke, have access to high quality specialist care; - publication of the Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) Outcomes Strategy in 2013, which includes many stroke specific strategic ambitions; - a CVD collaborative group is being established to bring together relevant stakeholders in the field of CVD and provide a forum where relevant work being undertaken in this area and potential new initiatives can be discussed and responsibilities for action determined; - NHS England’s National Clinical Director for Stroke is working with clinical networks, urgent and emergency care networks, clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and Sustainability and Transformation Plan areas on how stroke care is best delivered to local communities; and - services for the management of transient ischaemic attack (TIA) are changing in many areas to meet the new standard that all TIA patients should be seen and assessed within 24 hours, not just high risk patients. CCGs are being encouraged to increase the geographical coverage of early supported discharge services. Prevention of stroke and other cardiovascular diseases is also a priority for NHS England, particularly reducing the very high prevalence of CVD in patients with mental health illness.

Female Genital Mutilation

Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will take steps to make training on how to respond to cases of female genital mutilation mandatory for all doctors, nurses and medical staff.

David Mowat: The Department’s Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) Prevention programme is continuing its work with NHS England and across the health service to tackle FGM. Launched in 2014 with total funding of over £4 million the programme has delivered training and outreach nationally reaching thousands of National Health Service professionals, introduced data collection and statistics, and developed policy and guidance on safeguarding and commissioning services. The programme in 2016/17 is focussing on the mental health needs of survivors and on embedding change across the NHS. Last year the Department commissioned Health Education England to develop a range of FGM e-learning sessions available free of charge to NHS staff. These sessions include training on the mandatory reporting duty. As part of the Department’s FGM Prevention Programme an FGM Mandatory Reporting awareness pack was sent to all hospitals and general practitioner practices in February 2016. In addition, the Department has worked with partners to support them in hosting articles and awareness raising information; one example of this was the provision of a flyer insert about the new FGM mandatory reporting duty which was included in the Royal College of Midwives (RCM) magazine, sent to approximately 45,000 RCM members.

Medical Records: Databases

Julie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many patient medical records are held electronically on the GP2GP system.

Nicola Blackwood: The GP2GP system is used to transfer electronic health records when a patient moves to a new general practitioner (GP), as such it does not hold any records, it simply facilitates the transfer from the previous GP’s clinical computer system across the NHS Spine, to the new GP’s clinical computer system.

Health Services: Foreign Nationals

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent estimate he has made of the total amount of uncollected fees related to the use of the NHS by foreign nationals; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Department does not have an overall estimate of uncollected fees relating to the use of the National Health Service by foreign nationals. NHS trust and NHS foundation trust annual accounts provide information on provisions and debt that has been written off, however this does not give the total debt picture because some of these amounts will be paid in subsequent years.

Circle Holdings

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group, NHS, England, NHS Improvement and Lewisham and Greenwich Healthcare Trust as a result of that clinical commissioning group's decision to propose signing the contract to provide musculoskeletal services with Circle Holdings PLC; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: The provision of local health services is a matter for the local National Health Service. There have been no discussions between Ministers at the Department with Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), NHS England, NHS Improvement and Lewisham and Greenwich Healthcare Trust as a result of the CCG's decision to propose signing the contract to provide musculoskeletal services with Circle Holdings PLC.

Circle Holdings

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the performance of (a) NHS England, (b) NHS Improvement and (c) Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group in the awarding of the contract to provide musculoskeletal services in Greenwich to Circle Holdings PLC; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: The procurement of local health services by means of competitive tendering is a matter for the local National Health Service. NHS England has advised that it carried out an assessment of the procurement process that Greenwich Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) followed for the contracting of musculoskeletal services and was satisfied the CCG had followed due process. We are informed that NHS Improvement did not have a role in this procurement process as it was a local commissioning decision for Greenwich CCG.

Russells Hall Hospital: Private Finance Initiative

Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent estimate his Department has made of the real terms amount in (a) interest and (b) service charges and (c) all other costs repayments in unitary charges over the lifetime of all the private finance initiative schemes at Russells Hall Acute Hospital.

Mr Philip Dunne: The latest published information for the overall cost projections for all private finance initiative (PFI) schemes over the lifetime of their contracts, including that at Russells Hall Acute Hospital (part of The Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust), is available on the Treasury’s website, via: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/private-finance-initiative-and-private-finance-2-projects-2015-summary-data This information was collected in financial year 2014/15. The data collection in financial year 2015/16 is to be published shortly. The table shows that for the Russells Hall Acute Hospital the total unitary charge payment (UP) for 2014/15 was estimated as £41.120 million. UPs are subject to meeting agreed performance and quality standards, contractual variations agreed between the parties, and include an annual uprate assumption for inflation of 2.5%. The Trust’s 2015/16 annual report and accounts show the final outturn UP figure for 2014/15 as £39.267 million. Trusts are now required to account for the PFI scheme as ‘on-balance sheet’ and this means that the substance of the contract is that the trust has a finance lease and payments comprise two elements, a finance lease charge and service charge. The relevant note to the Trust’s 2015/16 accounts show an interest charge for 2014/15 of £5.752 million and a service charge of £21.696 million.

Pregnancy: Mental Illness

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, which public information campaigns his Department funds on perinatal mental illness; and what the cost is of each of those campaigns.

Nicola Blackwood: Public Health England's Start4Life Information Service for Parents (Start4Life ISP) - a subscription email service for parents-to-be and parents of children aged up to five - provides information on the signs of perinatal mental health problems and guidance on the support available to address them. Start4Life ISP is supported this year by a budget of £200,000, but this investment covers a range of pregnancy and child health topics. On 17 October my Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State launched the Our Chance campaign in partnership with Sands and Best Beginnings. Our Chance seeks to raise awareness and provide information and advice to reduce pregnancy risks – to help keep mothers and their babies as healthy and safe as possible. Further details of the Our Chance can be found at: www.ourchance.org.uk  The campaign centres around 25 short information films, in the following categories:- Introduction to Our Chance;- Warning signs of problems;- Looking after your body and your baby;- Your antenatal and postnatal appointments;- Mental wellbeing (An introduction to the importance of looking after your mental health during and after pregnancy, and signposting to all the other mental health films); and- Baby loss. The Department has contributed £121,809 towards this campaign and £8,000 was provided by NHS England to fund four of the 25 films.

Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of people referred for talking therapies received cognitive behaviour therapy in each of the last five years.

Nicola Blackwood: For ‘talking therapies’ we have referred to the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) programme for adults. Data is recorded for the number of people referred to IAPT and the number of people completing treatment who received Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) at the end of treatment. Not all therapy types are appropriate for all mental health conditions treated by IAPT. CBT, for example, is only appropriate for specific conditions. The table below includes the number of people referred to IAPT, the number of people entering IAPT treatment, the number of people completing IAPT treatment, and the number of people completing treatment who received CBT at the end of their treatment, by financial year at national level.Financial YearNumber referred to IAPT servicesNumber of who completed treatment and received CBT at the end of treatmentTable(s) in original data fileLink to original data file2013/141,118,990152,657 *Tables 1a, 5bhttp://content.digital.nhs.uk/catalogue/PUB14899/psych-ther-ann-rep-tab-2013-14.xlsx2014/151,267,193189,162 *Tables 1a, 9chttp://content.digital.nhs.uk/catalogue/PUB19098/psych-ther-ann-rep-tab-2014-15.xlsx2015/161,399,088163,250Tables 1a, 4bhttp://content.digital.nhs.uk/catalogue/PUB22110/psych-ther-ann-rep-tab-2015-16_v1.1.xlsx We have not provided data for 2011/12 or 2012/13 as information on therapy type was not published for referrals during this time period. We have not provided data for the year 2016/17 as this year has not concluded. Note that the IAPT dataset records each referral as opposed to individual (one person may have more than one referral within a specified time period). The number of referrals and the number of those who have completed treatment who had CBT as their final therapy type is reported in the “Monthly Activity Data Files” which can be accessed via the links under “Monthly Improving Access to Psychological Therapies Dataset Reports” at: http://content.digital.nhs.uk/iaptreports

Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the proportion was of people accessing mental health services who are allocated to the wrong mental health cluster after their initial assessment in each of the last five years.

Nicola Blackwood: This information is not held centrally.

NHS: Compensation

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much the NHS has paid in compensation to people receiving a misdiagnosis for their (a) mental and (b) physical illness in each of the last five years.

Mr Philip Dunne: The information requested is not held by the Department. The data has been provided by the NHS Litigation Authority (NHSLA). The question has been interpreted to refer to clinical payments in the years for 2011/12 to 2015/16 (as at 30 October 2016) where one of the causes was ‘wrong diagnosis’. The category of ‘Mental Illness’ covers the specialties of ‘psychiatry/mental health’ and ‘community mental health’. ‘Physical Illness’ covers all other specialties. ‘Compensation’ has been interpreted to refer to damages. The data relates to payments in year and therefore the incident year and/or notification year of the claims within the cohort could fall in years prior to the payment year. The table below shows how much the NHS has paid in compensation to people receiving a misdiagnosis for their mental and physical illness in each of the last five years. Year of PaymentMental IllnessPhysical Illness2015/16£2,000£7,971,7622014/15£0£13,469,3672013/14£3,500£9,593,6022012/13£0£5,330,0062011/12£0£5,772,947Source: NHS LADate: November 2016

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Medical Treatments

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will remove CBT and GET from the list of treatments for ME patients.

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will institute a revision of NICE guidelines for chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalopathy.

Nicola Blackwood: I refer the hon. Member to the Answer I gave on 23 November 2016 to his Question 53645.

NHS: Mergers

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, in what circumstances NHS organisations are allowed to apply to reinstate merger proposals which have been previously rejected by the Competition and Markets Authority.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has a duty to review mergers and acquisitions involving National Health Service foundation trusts to assess the impact on quality and choice of NHS services to patients. If an NHS proposal has been reviewed and has given undertakings to the CMA relating to its future merger or reorganisation plans, then the NHS foundation trusts can put forward any new proposal to merge services or work jointly for the CMA to consider. The CMA will then consider whether there has been a change in circumstances to justify varying or releasing the undertakings previously given.

Community Hospitals: Dorset

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 21 November 2016 to Question 53429, how many community hospital beds are located in East Dorset; and what plans he has for the future number of such beds.

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 21 November 2016 to Question 53429, at which specific location the 44 beds in (a) Bournemouth North, (b) Central Bournemouth, Christchurch and (d) East Bournemouth are situated; and for what reason none of the planned additional 69 community beds is to be located in Bournemouth or Christchurch.

David Mowat: This information is not held centrally and I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 21 November 2016 to Question 53429. In addition to the information provided in my Answer to Question 53429, NHS Dorset Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) advises there are 22 inpatient beds at Wimborne Hospital and 22 at St Leonard’s Hospital in the East Dorset locality. Any future plans for these beds are a matter for the local NHS. We understand the CCG is in the process of carrying out a Clinical Services Review, which will be subject to public consultation in due course. The CCG also advises that Broadwaters residential care home sited in Wick is a local authority facility where 26 beds provide care to Bournemouth people. The CCG further advises Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch NHS Foundation Trusts, NHS Dorset CCG and the local authority spot purchase with a large range of care/nursing homes a further 18 beds across both Christchurch and Bournemouth localities.

Air Pollution: Death

Andy Burnham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate he has made of the mortality rate in (a) England and (b) Greater Manchester caused by long-term exposure to particulate air pollution arising from human activities.

David Mowat: The fraction of annual all-cause adult mortality attributable to anthropogenic (human-made) particulate air pollution (measured as fine particulate matter, PM2.5*) is provided by the Public Health Outcomes Framework (PHOF) indicator 3.01. This calculates the mortality burden associated with long-term exposure to anthropogenic particulate air pollution at current levels, expressed as the percentage of annual deaths from all causes in those aged 30+. In formation on presents the fraction of mortality attributable to particulate air pollution extracted from the PHOF 3.01 indicator, for the period 2010-14, for England, North West and Areas within the Greater Manchester Area (as GMA is not an Administrative Area) is available at:http://www.phoutcomes.info/search/air%20quality#page/4/gid/1/pat/6/par/E12000002/ati/102/are/E08000010/iid/90357/age/1/sex/4

Patients: Low Incomes

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if his Department will make available travel assistance to families who do not meet the criteria of the NHS Low Income Scheme.

David Mowat: There are no plans to extend help with the cost of travel to receive National Health Service treatment to those families who do not qualify under the NHS Low Income Scheme. Patient Transport Services are available without charge where there is a clinical need.

Clinical Commissioning Groups: Greater London

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much funding was allocated to each clinical commissioning group area in London per head of population in 2016-17; what funding is proposed to be so allocated in 2017-18; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Philip Dunne: Responsibility for clinical commissioning group (CCG) allocations rests with NHS England. A full table setting out allocations to each CCG for 2016-17 to 2020-21 is published on NHS England’s website and can be found here: https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/ccg-allocations.pdf The table below sets out the per capita allocations for each CCG in London in 2016-17 and 2017-18, and is taken from the published table noted above.  2016-172017-18CCGFinal per capita allocation (£)Final per capita growth (%)Final per capita allocation (£)Final per capita growth (%)NHS Barking and Dagenham CCG1,2021.03%1,2151.11%NHS Barnet CCG1,1232.24%1,1351.13%NHS Bexley CCG1,2394.33%1,2601.69%NHS Brent CCG1,0892.09%1,1021.14%NHS Bromley CCG1,2263.15%1,2391.11%NHS Camden CCG1,344-0.07%1,329-1.08%NHS City and Hackney CCG1,2240.98%1,2371.11%NHS Croydon CCG1,1544.66%1,1711.44%NHS Ealing CCG1,1042.01%1,1161.11%NHS Enfield CCG1,1733.58%1,1891.39%NHS Hounslow CCG1,0633.66%1,0751.14%NHS Greenwich CCG1,2432.75%1,2571.16%NHS Hammersmith and Fulham CCG1,2311.05%1,2350.36%NHS Haringey CCG1,1252.48%1,1371.11%NHS Harrow CCG1,0704.75%1,0881.68%NHS Havering CCG1,2695.63%1,2931.91%NHS Hillingdon CCG1,1104.18%1,1221.11%NHS Islington CCG1,3710.35%1,3851.07%NHS Kingston CCG1,0551.34%1,0671.11%NHS Lambeth CCG1,1621.85%1,1751.11%NHS Lewisham CCG1,2771.56%1,2911.11%NHS Newham CCG1,1081.21%1,1201.11%NHS Redbridge CCG1,0963.17%1,1081.11%NHS Richmond CCG1,0631.69%1,0751.11%NHS Southwark CCG1,2431.57%1,2571.11%NHS Merton CCG1,0621.66%1,0741.11%NHS Sutton CCG1,2111.64%1,2241.14%NHS Tower Hamlets CCG1,1720.64%1,1851.11%NHS Waltham Forest CCG1,1232.43%1,1361.11%NHS Wandsworth CCG1,0571.55%1,0691.11%NHS West London CCG1,4400.88%1,437-0.25%NHS Central London (Westminster) CCG1,2510.00%1,238-1.00%London1,1712.21%1,1831.01% NHS England has also published a technical guide to allocations which sets out all the individual factors used in determining the allocation levels. The guide is available here: https://www.england.nhs.uk/2016/04/allocations-tech-guide-16-17/#

Criminal Proceedings: Mental Illness

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 8 November 2016 to Question 51510, by what date he plans for liaison and diversion coverage to be extended to 100 per cent of the population.

Nicola Blackwood: In July 2016 the Government announced provision of a further £12 million to extend the coverage of Liaison and Diversion schemes to cover 75% of the population of England by 2017/18. The intention is to continue to expand coverage of Liaison and Diversion services to 100% by 2020/21, subject to agreement that the roll out continues to show positive benefits.